Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Welcome back and happy Thursday! Hot, Hot, Hot! That's the word for July. We have been lucky the past couple years to have pretty mild summers, but this year is proving to be quite warm which of course is not good with the drought. All water sources are looking pretty low and sad. Our A/C system is still not right either so we're working on that. Hopefully we'll have some real answers soon and it won't be to replace the whole system. It is working just not as well as it should be.

At any rate here's what went down last week:

Day 202- Monday, 7/21/14

The boys just got back from swim practice, and I made them chicken strips for dinner. Justin wanted to make a sandwich with his so he ran upstairs and grabbed a notebook where he had written his recipe. LOL! He cracks me up. He was so diligent in checking and rechecking to make sure he had made exactly what was written. It had the crispy chicken with lettuce, cheese, ranch and buffalo wing sauce. He said it was the best ;0)

Day 203- Tuesday, 7/22/14

I was out walking the dog and spotted this rusted farm equipment wheel with some beautiful little sunflowers growing through it and thought that was a fun contrast. I'll always be a country girl at heart.

Day 204- Wednesday, 7/23/14

Party preparations continue at our house. My weekend will be shot so I'm trying to get as much done during the weekdays this week and next before the big day.

Day 205- Thursday, 7/24/14

It wouldn't be a typical week without a trip or two or three to Target. It seems my kids always gravitate to the cereal isle. I'm pretty sure I buy at least 5-6 boxes a week. Next stop--milk!

Day 206- Friday, 7/25/14

It's Friday! No time to relax though. John is at the pool setting up for a swim meet, and I'm picking kids up. I just went to pick Tyler up from work and now he's unwinding with Bella--she's great for that. Then off to pick Justin up. He was at SunSplash water park all day with his Teen Hero group.

Day 207- Saturday, 7/26/14
We're are at the end of the swim season! We'll be at the pool all weekend for the 2-day Championship meet. John did a great job DJing for the event while I helped time some races and kept track of my swimmers. We were here for 13 hours today in 100+ degree heat!!!! The ironic thing is that over those 13 hours my 3 kids together swam a grand total of 17 minutes (just over 5 minutes for each). LOL! More to come tomorrow.

Day 208- Sunday, 7/27/14

Here we are at day two. Last day of swim for the year and at least it was a cooler and shorter day--only10 hours ;0) In the pictures: Coach Haley is watching on as Tyler and his friends prep to start a race. There's fierce competition in the water with these teens, but once the boys are done with each event it's back to the tent for fun and games until the next race.

That's all. I'm so happy to be done with swim and there will be no karate next month either so August is shaping up nicely. Maybe we can relax a bit more during the last few weeks of summer.

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

Happy Tuesday! It's beautiful here. We even had a little rain Sunday which was nice to help cool things down and clear things out. It messed up my car though--needs a real wash super badly. I'll have to get on that this week.

Here's what happened last week:

Day 195- Monday, 7/14/14

I'm picking Brandon up from his daily sports camp and it seems he's been really into playing basketball. I may have to sign him up for a team this winter. Apparently he's good a 3-pt shots and has been practicing those non-stop. Once we got home we discovered our A/C was out. It was 110 outside today so inside my house got up to the mid 90's this evening. It took them 3 days to repair the unit and thankfully things cooled down considerably after this first day so it wasn't too bad. We were saved by the evening Delta Breeze.

Day 196- Tuesday 7/15/14

Justin helped me with the first harvest of tomatoes. We'll have a second round in a couple weeks. John got right on it and made fresh salsa with this batch. It's amazing how much better home grown veggies and fruits taste.

Day 197- Wednesday, 7/16/14

Rusty just turned 2 years old this past week. I was trying to get a good close up picture of him, but he was not happy being chased by the camera so this shot through the dining chairs will have to do. He just wasn't in the mood and feels safer at a distance. Crazy cat! I can't believe he's 2 already. He's been such a great fit for us and is always so curious about and good with the whole family.

Day 198- Thursday, 7/17/14

Finally a walk out with my pup. John and I trade off walking her each evening, and I actually look forward to it but have been so busy shuttling kids here and there that it just has not worked out for about a week now. Thankfully no one had anything going on tonight so Bella and I got our walk in together and what a pleasant evening it was.

Day 199- Friday, 7/18/14

We're working on printing out birthday invitations for my soon to be 10 year old. He's having his first sleepover party and is super excited.

Day 200- Saturday, 7/19/14

We spent the day in Carmichael at an away swim meet. It's the last meet before Champs. Both my younger boys kept getting stuck in the lane on the wall, but it was easier for me to get closer pictures so I was fine with it ;0) Tyler had to work today which meant he missed out but will most certainly be at Champs next weekend.

Day 201- Sunday, 7/20/14

Speak of the devil! He's been working a lot which means a lot of trips back and forth to Davis. At least it's helped him get some good freeway driving in. He's always smiling when he's driving--cracks me up! 25 hours down and 25 more to go before he can get his official license in October.

That's it! Another busy week come and gone. Check back next week for more crazy fun. Summer is slipping away :0(

Tuesday, July 15, 2014

Welcome back and happy Tuesday! We are midway through July which means we are burning through summer. It feels like it too. Yesterday was super hot and our air-conditioner went out so I'll be dealing with that today. At least we had a fun and cooler weekend on the coast in Santa Cruz. Wish I was back there right now!

Here are last week's pictures:

Day 188- Monday, 7/7/14

It's not summer without spotting some of these. We're lucky to live in an area where you can find huge fields of sunflowers. This field is out by where I work and a perfect place to visit on my lunch break.

Day 189- Tuesday, 7/8/14

Speaking of work--I'm rocking the pink tinted safety glasses today in the environmental sampling lab. I hate the artificial lighting in here which is why it's nice to get outside on my break and visit those vibrant sunflowers.

Day 190- Wednesday, 7/9/14

We were out running errands and had some time to kill before swim practice so we stopped for a cool treat on this warm day. Justin is away at leadership camp.

Day 191- Thursday, 7/10/14

Here he is! I just picked Justin up from a 3 day, 2 night tent camping trip with his Teen Hero group. LOL! He looks like he needs a shower. He had fun and learned a lot about what it means to be a good leader. We missed him and are happy to have him home.

Day 192- Friday, 7/11/14

TGIF! Tyler just got off his life-guarding shift in Davis so we went out to lunch and tried Krush Burger for the first time. Yum! I'm pretty sure we'll be back. Then we headed to the imaging lab for some x-rays. Our family dr wants to keep a closer eye on how Tyler's growing and the curve of his spine--tall people problems ;0/

Day 193- Saturday, 7/12/14

We're having fun in Santa Cruz with the water polo team. In the morning we hit up the Mystery Spot which was a blast with this group. Then we headed to the boardwalk and turned the kids loose so us parents could have a nice quiet lunch with drinks ;0)

Day 194- Sunday, 7/13/14

Today was the tournament day in Santa Cruz. It's great to have "our" team back to play some solid polo. Thanks Connie for taking such great close up shots of all the players. The younger siblings could care less about watching polo, but at least they have each other and know how to entertain themselves while being forced to sit through 3 different games. Gotta love how they roll.

That's it for now. I'm hoping to get our air conditioner back in order today or it's going to be a long week. At least the temps are cooling to the 90's.

Tuesday, July 8, 2014

Welcome back! I hope everyone had a wonderful 4th of July. Ours was super fun. We spent the holiday weekend up in the mountains with a couple other families and just relaxed and had a good time. It was a much needed break.

Here are last week's pictures:

Day 181- Monday, 6/30/14

Brandon brought this little guy home from day camp in his lunch box today. As you can see he's still very much into Minecraft. I love that he put his own personal twist on a simple paper craft--it's so him!

Day 182- Tuesday, 7/1/14

It's July 1st and Brandon is excited to hold my monthly marker because July is his birthday month. He can't wait. It's his year for a big party and he's planning his first sleepover. Too bad he has to wait until the very end of July for the big day.

Day 183- Wednesday, 7/2/14

Justin helped me bake a double batch of brownies to take on our trip tomorrow. It will be fun to share them with all our friends we're spending the holiday weekend with. Ghirardelli make's the best brownie mixes--yum!

Day 184- Thursday, 7/3/14

Today we headed for the mountains and made it to the lake house in Tahoe. Just look at that view! Here we are surrounded by all this natural beauty and of course the kids want to bond over gaming ;0) These 3 boys are all 15 and have known each other since they were born (Tyler, Andre, and Marcus).

Day 185- Friday, 7/4/14

Happy 4th of July! Our family is having a great time here in Tahoe. It's a little more crowded than I would like, but as long as we stay at the house we are good. I made this festive cake that the younger kids are holding, and later that night we watched as all the boats headed out to the main part of the lake to watch fireworks. It was quite a sight!

Day 186- Saturday, 7/5/14

Enough of the house! It's time to get out and enjoy the wonderful weather and the surroundings. Wendy and I took the younger kids on a hike in the woods while Polly took the older kids to the beach at the lake. Then we all enjoyed a nice surf and turf meal together. There were 10 kids and over 20 people total in the house this weekend. It was a lot of fun. Too bad we have to head home tomorrow.

Day 187- Sunday, 7/6/14

Looks at these pets! They missed us so much and won't let me out of their sight. That's the worst part about traveling--having to leave the pets behind, but our wonderful neighbor girl, Amanda, takes great care of them. Aren't they cute? Also look what was in the mailbox when we got home--Tyler's first official paycheck. Yay!

Tuesday, July 1, 2014

Happy Tuesday and happy July! How did we get to July already? Yikes! This year is flying by. It's going to be a typical hot July here. We'll be heading to the mountains to escape the heat for the 4th. I can't wait. It's not only cooler but more peaceful there.

Here is how last week went-

Day 174- Monday, 6/23/14

Unfortunately, late last night after Tyler and I got home from water polo in Clovis, Brandon woke up sick with a migraine and was throwing up until mid morning. Neither one of us slept so I stayed home with him today and we chilled on the couch watching movies. The original Black Beauty was on. I haven't seen that movie in decades, and we both loved it. Also, see the blue X? That end of our sectional is broken and if you sit there you will sink! *Note to self: Get it fixed.

Day 175- Tuesday, 6/24/14

He snaps back quickly. Tonight is karate testing and Justin watches on as Brandon does his thing. He was a bit moody today but otherwise ok and did great on his Kata.

Day 176- Wednesday, 6/25/14

My boys are happy to have this summertime treat. Tyler in particular can't get enough. I love the small sized ones. They are perfect for our family.

Day 177- Thursday, 6/26/14

Tonight was the Glitz, Glamour, and Girlfriends' SPCA event in Rocklin at Thunder Valley Resort. Sharon invited me to attend with some of her neighborhood friends and we all had a great time for a good cause.

Day 178- Friday, 6/27/14

My calendar is full! Thankfully there is still time to squeeze in a date night here and there. It was the perfect evening to spend at Chevy's on the river. We ate outside and enjoyed the breeze.

Day 179- Saturday, 6/28/14

We have been talking about getting a firepit for our backyard for years and when we finally found one it was out of stock for over a month, but today was our lucky day. John got it all set up, we did some night swimming, and then made s'mores over the fire. It was really fun and a beautiful evening. We could even see the stars.

Day 180- Sunday, 6/29/14

Here come the 100 degree temps again. This next week is going to be hot. The boys beat the heat today by playing a friendly game of ball in the pool.

That wraps up another month. See you after the long holiday weekend. Have a happy and safe 4th!